Communication analysis apparatus and communication analysis method

ABSTRACT

To obtain a communication analysis apparatus and a communication analysis method that are allowed to analyze a communication message and a waveform signal in such a manner that the communication message and waveform signal are associated with each other. A communication analysis apparatus includes division organization information addition means for adding, to a plurality of division data obtained by dividing data into predetermined lengths, division organization information  300  including a division unit  3011  for defining the predetermined lengths and a division position  3013  that is information about the start position and end position of division data in the data.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a communication analysis apparatus anda communication analysis method for supporting an analysis of atransmission failure of a network.

BACKGROUND ART

If the shape of a waveform signal passing through a transmission path isdisturbed for some reason and thus the signal intended by the commandsource cannot be maintained until the signal reaches the commanddestination, a network transmission failure occurs. Therefore, ananalysis of a physical layer level of the network is required as adiagnosis of such a transmission failure.

As a related-art example of a waveform signal analysis and as arelated-art example intended to easily conduct a communication analysisby presenting a communication sequence and a physical amount in such amanner that the communication sequence and physical amount areassociated with each other, for example, there has been proposed acommunication test apparatus where “display means 108 disposes anddisplays, in chronological order, the sequence log display and power logdisplay 9 showing the presence or absence of a communication from thepower log information in a distinguishable manner” (for example, seePatent Document 1).

Also, as a related-art example intended to detect a communicationinterference wave by controlling a parameter as appropriate with respectto display of an analysis result, for example, there has been proposed adigital modulation signal evaluation apparatus where “a threshold setupunit 37 obtains a threshold R for determining the presence or absence ofan interference wave on the basis of a modulation error ratio of asub-carrier not included in an interference range expected to beinterfered with by a interference wave among stored modulation errorratios and a determination unit 38 compares the threshold R with themodulation error ratio of the sub-carrier included in the interferencerange so as to determine whether there is an interference wave, anddisplays a result of the determination” (for example, see PatentDocument 2).

Among related-art examples of a physical layer level analysis are theabove-mentioned Patent Document 1 and a transmission signal analysisapparatus (for example, see Patent Document 3) that previously sets anideal pilot signal for an OFDM-type transmission signal and analyzes anactual pilot signal using the ideal pilot signal.

RELATED-ART DOCUMENTS Patent Documents

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application PublicationNo. 2006-33007 (Claim 4, pp. 15 to 21, FIGS. 1 to 2)

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application PublicationNo. 2005-311570 (ABSTRACT)

[Patent Document 3] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application PublicationNo. 2006-245972 (pp. 6 to 7, FIGS. 1 to 6)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

In the related-art failure analyses, an apparatus for analyzingcommunication messages and an apparatus for analyzing waveform signalsexist independently. This causes a problem that it is not easy toanalyze a failure in such a manner that a communication message and awaveform signal are associated with each other and thus the workload isincreased.

While there are multiple waveform signal analysis techniques such as thepower spectrum analysis, constellation analysis, or MER (modulationerror ratio) analysis, analysis functions are independent of one anotherin related-art apparatuses. This causes a problem that it is difficultto read an association between analysis results.

In the related-art failure analyses, a worker can estimate thecommunication state qualitatively by observing a voltage level, afrequency component, an in-phase component and an out-of-phasecomponent, or the like of a waveform signal passing through atransmission path. However, it is not easy for the worker to estimatethe communication state quantitatively. Therefore, if a failure occurson a network, only experts having expertise or experience aboutcommunication protocols or waveform signals can cope with the failure.

The present invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems andan object of the invention is to obtain a communication analysisapparatus and a communication analysis method that are allowed toanalyze a communication message and a waveform signal in such a mannerthat the communication message and waveform signal are associated witheach other.

Another object of the invention is to obtain a communication analysisapparatus that determines the network state quantitatively to conductthe analysis work efficiently so that a worker can easily identify acause of a transmission failure or a failure occurrence location andcope with the failure even if the worker does not have expertise orexperience about communication protocols or waveform signals.

Means for Solving the Problems

A communication analysis apparatus according to the present invention isa communication analysis apparatus for analyzing data acquired from atransmission path of a communication network and includes divisionorganization information addition means for adding division organizationinformation to a plurality of pieces of division data, the pieces ofdivision data being obtained by dividing the data into predeterminedlengths, the division organization information including division unitinformation for defining the predetermined lengths and division positioninformation, the division position information being information about astart position and an end position of the pieces of division data in thedata.

Also, an communication analysis apparatus according to the presentinvention is a communication analysis apparatus connected to a sourceterminal or a destination terminal of an analysis waveform signal orconnected to a transmission path linking the source terminal anddestination terminal and includes: analysis waveform informationgeneration means for generating analysis waveform information includinga waveform signal on the basis of a waveform signal that is an analysissubject transmitted through a transmission path and adheres to apredetermined communication protocol; storage means including an idealwaveform signal adhering to a communication protocol; and communicationstate determination means. The analysis waveform information generationmeans extracts a portion of a waveform signal as an analysis waveformsignal that is an analysis subject, the portion corresponding to theideal waveform signal stored in the storage means. The communicationstate determination means compares the analysis waveform signalextracted by the analysis waveform information generation means with theideal waveform signal stored in the storage means, and estimates thecommunication state of the transmission path on the basis of a result ofthe comparison.

Advantages

The present invention allows analyzing a communication message and awaveform signal in such a manner that the communication message andwaveform signal are associated with each other, by adding divisionorganization information including division unit information anddivision position information to multiple pieces of division dataobtained by dividing data into predetermined lengths.

Also, since the communication analysis apparatus according to thepresent invention automatically determines the network state, a workercan easily identify a cause of a transmission failure or a failureoccurrence location and cope with the failure even if the worker doesnot have expertise or experience about communication protocols orwaveform signals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a communication analysisapparatus 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation-added measurement data 200 according to the first embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation 300 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is diagram showing operations in an analysis and synchronizationprocedure 1B according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a method for associating a communicationmessage 201 a and a waveform signal 201 b with each other using thedivision organization information 300 according to the first embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communicationanalysis apparatus 100A according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation-added data 200A.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation 300A.

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing a method by which synchronizationdetermination means 108A associates a communication message 201 aA and awaveform signal 201 bA with each other using the division organizationinformation 300A.

FIG. 10 is a drawing showing a configuration of an analysis partdetermination table 1091A.

FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram showing a generation process and aconfiguration of analysis waveform information 400 aA.

FIG. 12 is a drawing showing the contents of quantitative estimationsmade by communication state determination means 113A.

REFERENCE NUMERALS

100 communication analysis apparatus

101 communication means

102 waveform measuring means

103 division organization information-added communication messagestorage means

104 division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans

105 communication unit division organization information addition means

106 communication unit synchronization determination means

1061 communication unit synchronization determination condition

107 modulation unit division organization information addition means

108 modulation unit synchronization determination means

1081 modulation unit synchronization determination condition

109 communication analysis means

1091 communication analyzer

10911 communication analyzer label

10912 communication analysis subject

10913 communication analysis unit

10921 communication analyzer label

110 waveform analysis means

1101 waveform analyzer

11011 waveform analyzer label

11012 waveform analysis subject

11013 waveform analysis unit

111 division organization information-added display data generationmeans

1111 display data generator

11111 display data label

11112 generation subject

11113 generation unit

112 division organization information-added display data storage means

113 display data specification means

114 association ID display data extraction means

115 analysis result display means

200 division organization information-added measurement data

200 a division organization information-added communication message

200 b division organization information-added waveform signal

200 c division organization information-added display data

201 measurement data

201 a communication message

201 b waveform signal

201 c display data

202 measurement data information

202 a 1 message acquisition time

202 b 1 waveform acquisition time

202 b 2 sampling rate

202 c 2 generation subject range

203 division organization information processing flag

203 a 1 communication unit extraction flag

203 a 2 communication unit synchronization determination flag

203 a 3 modulation unit extraction flag

203 a 4 modulation unit synchronization determination flag

203 a 5 communication analysis flag

203 b 1 communication unit extraction flag

203 b 2 communication unit synchronization determination flag

203 b 3 modulation unit extraction flag

203 b 4 modulation unit synchronization determination flag

203 b 5 waveform analysis flag

300 division organization information

300 a 1 message communication unit division organization information

300 a 2 message modulation unit division organization information

300 b 1 waveform communication unit division organization information

300 b 2 waveform modulation unit division organization information

300 c 1 display division organization information

300 c 2 selection division organization information

301 basic information

3011 division unit

3012 basic ID

3013 division position

3014 division time

3015 measurement data type

302 associated information

3021 association ID

303 analysis information

3031 analysis label

3032 analysis value

100A communication analysis apparatus

101A communication means

102A waveform measuring means

103A division organization information-added communication messagestorage means

104A division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans

105A message division organization information addition means

106A waveform division organization information addition means

107A message analysis means

108A synchronization determination means

114A analysis result display means

200A division organization information-added data

200 aA division organization information-added communication message

200 bA division organization information-added waveform signal

201A data

201 aA communication message

201 bA waveform signal

202A data information

202 a 1A message acquisition time

202 b 1A waveform acquisition time

203A division organization information processing flag

203 a 1A communication unit extraction flag

203 a 2A message analysis flag

203 a 3A synchronization determination flag

203 b 1A communication unit extraction flag

203 b 2A synchronization determination flag

300A division organization information

300 aA message division organization information

300 bA waveform division organization information

301A basic information

302A associated information

303A analysis information

400 aA analysis waveform information

400 bA ideal waveform information

401 aA analysis part waveform signal

402 aA characteristic amount label

403 aA characteristic amount

404 aA communication state value

1071A message analyzer

10711A message analyzer label

10712A message analysis subject

1091A analysis part determination table

1111A characteristic amount calculator

11111A characteristic amount label

11112 a calculation subject data

1131A communication state determination table

3011A division unit

3012A basic ID

3013A division position

3014A division time

3015A data type

3021A association ID

3031A analysis label

3032A analysis value

10911A analysis part start position

10912A analysis part end position

Best Modes for Carrying out the Invention

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a communication analysisapparatus 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.As shown in FIG. 1, the communication analysis apparatus 100 foranalyzing data acquired from a transmission path of a communicationnetwork includes a communication means 101, a waveform measuring means102, a division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103, a division organization information-added waveformsignal storage means 104, a communication unit division organizationinformation addition means 105, a communication unit synchronizationdetermination means 106, a modulation unit division organizationinformation addition means 107, a modulation unit synchronizationdetermination means 108, a communication analysis means 109, a waveformanalysis means 110, a division organization information-added displaydata generation means 111, a division organization information-addeddisplay data storage means 112, a display data specification means 113,an association ID display data extraction means 114, and one or moreanalysis result display means 115.

Any network such as in-house communication, power line communication,wireless communication, or inter-control apparatus communication may beused as a communication network. Also, an air-conditioner may be used asa control apparatus in inter-control apparatus communications. Also, atransmission path of a network may be wired or wireless.

The communication unit division organization information addition means105 or modulation unit division organization information addition means107 corresponds to division organization information addition meansaccording to the present invention.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 or division organization information-added waveformsignal storage means 104 corresponds to division organizationinformation-added data generation means according to the presentinvention.

The communication unit synchronization determination means 106 ormodulation unit synchronization determination means 108 corresponds tosynchronization determination means according to the present invention.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103, division organization information-added waveformsignal storage means 104, and communication unit synchronizationdetermination means 106, or modulation unit synchronizationdetermination means 108 correspond to data synchronization meansaccording to the present invention.

The communication analysis means 109 or waveform analysis means 110corresponds to signal analysis means according to the present invention.

The division organization information-added display data storage means112 corresponds to display range data storage means according to thepresent invention.

The association ID display data extraction means 114 corresponds toassociation display data extraction means according to the presentinvention.

The division organization information-added display data storage means112, display data specification means 113, association ID display dataextraction means 114, and analysis result display means 115 correspondto signal analysis result display means according to the presentinvention.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 stores one or more division organizationinformation-added communication messages 200 a.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 stores one or more division organization information-addedwaveform signals 200 b.

The communication unit synchronization determination means 106 has acommunication unit synchronization determination condition 1061.

The modulation unit synchronization determination means 108 has amodulation unit synchronization determination condition 1081.

The communication analysis means 109 includes one or more communicationanalyzers 1091. The communication analyzers 1091 include a communicationanalyzer label 10911, a communication analysis subject 10912, and acommunication analysis unit 10913. The communication analyzers 1091 maybe any analyzers such as an address analyzer for deriving thedestination address or source address of a communication message or aCRC error determination apparatus for deriving a CRC error of acommunication message.

The waveform analysis means 110 includes one or more waveform analyzers1101. The waveform analyzers 1101 include a waveform analyzer label11011, a waveform analysis subject 11012, and a waveform analysis unit11013. The waveform analyzers 1101 may be any analyzers such as aFourier transformer for deriving a frequency component of a waveformsignal, an I-Q calculator for deriving an in-phase component and anout-of-phase component of a waveform signal, an MER calculator forderiving the fluctuation amounts of an in-phase component and anout-of-phase component, a disturbance diagnostic apparatus for inferringa disturbing factor of a waveform signal, or a spectrum calculator forcalculating a power spectrum of a waveform signal.

The division organization information-added display data generationmeans 111 includes one or more display data generators 1111. The displaydata generators 1111 have a display data label 11111, a generationsubject 11112, and a generation unit 11113.

The division organization information-added display data storage means112 stores one or more pieces of division organization information-addeddisplay data 200 c.

The analysis result display means 115 may be any display means such as aspectrum display means for displaying a power spectrum of a waveformsignal, a constellation display means for displaying an in-phasecomponent and an out-of-phase component of a waveform signal, an MERdisplay means for displaying an MER of a waveform signal, or adisturbance display means for displaying an inference result of adisturbance factor of a waveform signal.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation-added measurement data 200 according to the first embodimentof the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the division organizationinformation-added measurement data 200 includes zero or more pieces ofdivision organization information 300, one or more pieces of measurementdata 201, zero or more pieces of measurement data information 202 thatare pieces of data information, and zero or more division organizationinformation processing flags 203.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of the division organizationinformation 300 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 3, the division organization information 300includes basic information 301, associated information 302, and analysisinformation 303.

The basic information 301 includes a division unit 3011 that is divisionunit information, a basic ID 3012, a division position 3013, a divisiontime 3014 that is division position information, and a measurement datatype 3015.

The associated information 302 includes zero or more association IDs3021.

The analysis information 303 includes zero or more sets of an analysislabel 3031 and an analysis value 3032.

Configurations of the above-mentioned division organizationinformation-added communication messages 200 a, division organizationinformation-added waveform signals 200 b, and division organizationinformation-added display data 200 c imitate a configuration of thedivision organization information-added measurement data 200.

That is, the division organization information-added communicationmessages 200 a include, as division organization information 300,message communication unit division organization information 300 a 1where the division unit 3011 is the communication unit and messagemodulation unit division organization information 300 a 2 where thedivision unit 3011 is the modulation unit.

Also, the division organization information-added communication messages200 a include a communication message 201 a as measurement data 201.

Also, the division organization information-added communication messages200 a include a message acquisition time 202 a 1 as measurement datainformation 202.

Also, the division organization information-added communication messages200 a include, as division organization information processing flags203, a communication unit extraction flag 203 a 1, a communication unitsynchronization determination flag 203 a 2, a modulation unit extractionflag 203 a 3, a modulation unit synchronization determination flag 203 a4, and a communication analysis flag 203 a 5.

Operations for generating each information will be described later.

The division organization information-added waveform signals 200 binclude, as division organization information 300, waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1 where thedivision unit 3011 is the communication unit and waveform modulationunit division organization information 300 b 2 where the division unit3011 is the modulation unit.

Also, the division organization information-added waveform signals 200 binclude a waveform signal 201 b as measurement data 201.

Also, the division organization information-added waveform signal 200 bincludes a waveform acquisition time 202 b 1 and a sampling rate 202 b 2as measurement data information 202.

Also, the division organization information-added waveform signal 200 bincludes, as division organization information processing flags 203, acommunication unit extraction flag 203 b 1, a communication unitsynchronization determination flag 203 b 2, a modulation unit extractionflag 203 b 3, a modulation unit synchronization determination flag 203 b4, and a waveform analysis flag 203 b 5.

Operations for generating each information will be described later.

The above-mentioned flags are set by the communication unit divisionorganization information addition means 105, communication unitsynchronization determination means 106, modulation unit divisionorganization information addition means 107, modulation unitsynchronization determination means 108, communication analysis means109, and waveform analysis means 110 by performing operations to bedescribed later.

The division organization information-added display data 200 c includes,as division organization information 300, display division organizationinformation 300 c 1 where the division unit 3011 is a display rangenumber (to be described later) and selection division organizationinformation 300 c 2 where the division unit 3011 is a display rangenumber (to be described later).

Also, the division organization information-added display data 200 cincludes display data 201 c as measurement data 201.

Also, the division organization information-added display data 200 cincludes, as measurement data information 202, a display data label11111 and a generation subject range 202 c 2.

Next, operations of the communication analysis apparatus 100 will bedescribed.

Processes performed by the communication analysis apparatus 100according to this embodiment are broadly classified into threeprocedures: a measurement procedure 1A; an analysis and synchronizationprocedure 1B; and an analysis result display procedure 1C. Hereafter,the above-mentioned procedures 1A to 1C will be described.

First, the measurement procedure 1A will be described.

The communication means 101 is connected to a wired or wirelesstransmission path. The communication means 101 acquires a communicationmessage 201 a transmitted or received by an apparatus connected to thetransmission path one after another, records a message acquisition time202 a 1 that is original measurement data acquisition time informationindicating the time when the communication message 201 a has beenacquired, and notifies the division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103 of the communication message 201a and message acquisition time 202 a 1.

The communication analysis apparatus 100 may include one or morecommunication means 101 and each communication means 101 may acquire acommunication message 201 a adhering to a different communicationprotocol.

The waveform measuring means 102 is connected to a wired or wirelesstransmission path. The waveform measuring means 102 acquires a waveformsignal 201 b transmitted or received by an apparatus connected to thetransmission path one after another at an arbitrary sampling rate 202 b2, records a waveform acquisition time 202 b 1 that is originalmeasurement data acquisition time information indicating the time whenthe waveform signal 201 b has been acquired, and notifies the divisionorganization information-added waveform signal storage means 104 of thewaveform signal 201 b, waveform acquisition time 202 b 1, and samplingrate 202 b 2.

The communication analysis apparatus 100 may include one or morewaveform measuring means 102 and each waveform measuring means 102 mayacquire a waveform signal 201 b having a different sampling rate 202 b2.

Each time the division organization information-added communicationmessage storage means 103 is notified of a communication message 201 aas division measurement data by the communication means 101, it newlygenerates a division organization information-added communicationmessage 200 a, incorporates the communication message 201 a as themeasurement data 201 and message acquisition time 202 a 1 as measurementdata information 202 into the division organization information-addedcommunication messages 200 a, and then stores the division organizationinformation-added communication messages 200 a.

Each time the division organization information-added waveform signalstorage means 104 is notified of a waveform signal 201 b as divisionmeasurement data by the waveform measuring means 102, it newly generatesa division organization information-added waveform signal 200 b, storesthe waveform signal 201 b as measurement data 201, stores the waveformacquisition time 202 b 1 and sampling rate 202 b 2 as measurement datainformation 202, and then memorizes the division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 b.

FIG. 4 is diagram showing operations in the analysis and synchronizationprocedure 1B according to the first embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a method for associating communicationmessage 201 a and a waveform signal 201 b with each other using divisionorganization information 300 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention.

Hereafter, the analysis and synchronization procedure 1B will bedescribed.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 notifies the communication unit division organizationinformation addition means 105 of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a where a communication unitextraction flag 203 a 1 is not set, among the stored divisionorganization information-added communication messages 200 a.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 notifies the communication unit synchronizationdetermination means 106 of a division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 a where a communication unit extraction flag203 a 1 is set and a communication unit synchronization determinationflag 203 a 2 is not set.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 notifies the modulation unit division organizationinformation addition means 107 of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a where a communication unitsynchronization determination flag 203 a 2 is set and a modulation unitextraction flag 203 a 3 is not set.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 notifies the modulation unit synchronizationdetermination means 108 of a division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 a where a modulation unit extraction flag 203a 3 is set and a communication analysis flag 203 a 4 is not set.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103 notifies the communication analysis means 109 of adivision organization information-added communication message 200 awhere a modulation unit synchronization determination flag 203 a 4 isset and a communication analysis flag 203 a 5 is not set.

It is assumed that each time the above-mentioned flags are set byperforming an operation to be described later, the correspondingabove-mentioned means is notified of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 notifies the communication unit division organizationinformation addition means 105 of a division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 b where a communication unitextraction flag 203 b 1 is not set, among the stored divisionorganization information-added waveform signals 200 b.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 notifies the communication unit synchronization determinationmeans 106 of a division organization information-added waveform signal200 b where a communication unit extraction flag 203 b 1 is set and acommunication unit synchronization determination flag 203 b 2 is notset.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 notifies the modulation unit division organization informationaddition means 107 of a division organization information-added waveformsignal 200 b where a communication unit synchronization determinationflag 203 b 2 is set and a modulation unit extraction flag 203 b 3 is notset.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 notifies the modulation unit synchronization determinationmeans 108 of a division organization information-added waveform signal200 b where a modulation unit extraction flag 203 b 3 is set and amodulation unit synchronization determination flag 203 b 4 is not set.

The division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104 notifies the waveform analysis means 110 of a divisionorganization information-added waveform signal 200 b where a modulationunit synchronization determination flag 203 b 4 is set and a waveformanalysis flag 203 b 5 is not set.

It is assumed that each time the above-mentioned flags are set byperforming an operation to be described later, the correspondingabove-mentioned means is notified of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a.

The communication unit division organization information addition means105 sets the communication unit extraction flag 203 a 1 included in thenotified division organization information-added communication message200 a and derives the start position and end position of thecommunication unit included in the communication message 201 a and acommunication protocol adhered to by the communication message 201 a.

Each time the communication unit division organization informationaddition means 105 derives the start position and end position, itgenerates a message communication unit division organization information300 a 1 and stores basic information 301.

Specifically, the communication unit division organization informationaddition means 105 generates a basic ID 3012 that is an ID(identification) unique to the message communication unit divisionorganization information 300 a 1 and derives a start time correspondingto the start position and an end time corresponding to the end positionon the basis of the message acquisition time 202 a 1.

The communication unit division organization information addition means105 sets the communication unit for the division unit 3011 of the basicinformation 301, stores the generated basic ID 3012, stores the derivedstart position and end position in the division time, stores the derivedstart time and end time in the division time 3014, and stores thederived communication protocol in the measurement data type 3015.

As for the start position and end position, the communication unitdivision organization information addition means 105 may derive themfrom a downtime of the communication message 201 a or may derive them byextracting a start bit and a stop bit.

As for the communication protocol, the communication unit divisionorganization information addition means 105 may include a table forassociating message header formats and communication protocols with eachother and may derive the communication protocol from the table. Also,the communication analysis apparatus 100 may include a communicationmeans 101 for each communication protocol and the communication unitdivision organization information addition means 105 may derive thecommunication protocol by distinguishing a communication means 101 thatis the notification source of the communication message 201 a.

The communication unit division organization information addition means105 sets the communication unit extraction flag 203 b 1 included in thenotified division organization information-added waveform signal 200 band derives the start position and end position of the communicationunit from the waveform signal 201 b.

Each time this start position and end position are extracted, thecommunication unit division organization information addition means 105generates waveform communication unit division organization information300 b 1 and stores basic information 301 included in the waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1.

Specifically, the communication unit division organization informationaddition means 105 generates an basic ID 3012 unique to the waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1 and derivesa start time corresponding to the start position and an end timecorresponding to the end position on the basis of the waveformacquisition time 202 b 1 and sampling rate 202 b 2.

Then, the communication unit division organization information additionmeans 105 sets the communication unit for the division unit 3011 of thebasic information 301, stores the generated basic ID 3012, stores thederived start position and end position in the division position 3013,and stores the derived start time and end time in the division time3014.

As for the start position and end position, the communication unitdivision organization information addition means 105 may have a levelthreshold and derive the start position and end position by comparingthe level of the waveform signal 201 b with the level threshold. Also,the communication unit division organization information addition means105 may have a level change amount threshold and derive the startposition and end position by comparing the level change amount of thewaveform signal 201 b with the level change amount threshold.

The communication unit synchronization determination means 106 extractsone piece of message communication unit division organizationinformation 300 a 1 included in the notified division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a and one piece of thewaveform communication unit division organization information 300 b 1included in the notified division organization information-addedwaveform signal 200 b, and creates a set of the extracted pieces ofinformation.

If the division time 3014 included in the extracted messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1 and thedivision time 3014 included in the extracted waveform communication unitdivision organization information 300 b 1 meet the communication unitsynchronization determination condition 1061 to be described later, thecommunication unit synchronization determination means 106 stores eachinformation's basic ID 3012 in the other information's association ID3021, as shown in FIG. 5.

Also, the communication unit synchronization determination means 106sets the communication unit synchronization determination flag 203 a 2included in the division organization information-added communicationmessages 200 a and the communication unit synchronization determinationflag 203 b 2 included in the division organization information-addedwaveform signal 200 b.

The communication unit synchronization determination means 106repeatedly performs this process with respect to all sets of messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1 andwaveform communication unit division organization information 300 b 1.

The above-mentioned communication unit synchronization determinationcondition 1061 may be, for example, “the difference between the divisiontimes 3014 is equal to or smaller than a threshold” or “a value obtainedby adding an offset to the difference between the division times 3014 isequal to or smaller than a threshold.”

The threshold may be a constant value, or different values may be setfor communication protocols included in the division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a.

The modulation unit division organization information addition means 107sets the modulation unit extraction flag 203 a 3 included in thenotified division organization information-added communication message200 a.

Then, the modulation unit division organization information additionmeans 107 derives the start position and end position and the start timeand end time of the modulation unit included in the communicationmessage 201 a on the basis of the measurement data type 3015, divisionposition 3013, and division time 3014 included in the messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1.

If the modulation unit division organization information addition means107 succeeds in the derivation, it generates message modulation unitdivision organization information 300 a 2 and stores basic information301.

Specifically, the modulation unit division organization informationaddition means 107 generates a basic ID 3012 unique to the messagemodulation unit division organization information 300 a 2 and stores thegenerated basic ID 3012, stores the start position and end position inthe division position 3013, and stores the start time and end time inthe division time 3014.

If the division position 3013 included in the message modulation unitdivision organization information 300 a 2 is included in the divisionposition 3013 included in the message communication unit divisionorganization information 300 a 1, the modulation unit divisionorganization information addition means 107 copies the measurement datatype 3015 included in the message communication unit divisionorganization information 300 a 1 to the measurement data type 3015included in the message modulation unit division organizationinformation 300 a 2 so that the basic ID 3012 of the message modulationunit division organization information 300 a 2 becomes an ID that iscross-referential with the basic ID 3012 of the message communicationunit division organization information 300 a 1.

As shown in FIG. 5, the above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may berealized, for example, by defining basic IDs 3012 as hierarchical IDsand incorporating the basic ID 3012 of the message communication unitdivision organization information 300 a 1 into the basic IDs 3012 of thepieces of message modulation unit division organization information 300a 2. Also, the above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may be realized,for example, by defining basic IDs 3012 as numerical values having adigit unique to the division unit 3011 and giving an identical value tothe respective digits where the division unit 3011 is the communicationunit, of the basic ID 3012 included in the message communication unitdivision organization information 300 a 1 and the basic IDs 3012included in the message modulation unit division organizationinformation 300 a 2.

Also, the modulation unit division organization information additionmeans 107 sets the modulation unit extraction flag 203 b 3 included inthe notified division organization information-added waveform signal 200b.

Then, the modulation unit division organization information additionmeans 107 derives the start position and end position and the start timeand end time of the modulation unit included in the waveform signal 201b with respect to a piece of waveform communication unit divisionorganization information 300 b 1 including an association ID 3021 amongthe pieces of waveform communication unit division organizationinformation 300 b 1 included in the division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 b, on the basis of the measurementdata type 3015 of a piece of message communication unit divisionorganization information 300 a 1 having a basic ID 3012 stored in theassociation ID 3021 and on the basis of the division position 3013 anddivision time 3014 included in the piece of waveform communication unitdivision organization information 300 b 1.

If the modulation unit division organization information addition means107 succeeds in the derivation, it generates waveform modulation unitdivision organization information 300 b 2 and stores basic information301.

Specifically, the modulation unit division organization informationaddition means 107 generates a basic ID 3012 unique to the waveformmodulation unit division organization information 300 b 2 and stores thebasic ID 3012, stores the start position and end position in thedivision position 3013, and stores the start time and end time in thedivision time 3014.

If the division position included in the waveform modulation unitdivision organization information 300 b 2 is included in the divisionposition included in the waveform communication unit divisionorganization information 300 b 1, the modulation unit divisionorganization information addition means 107 makes the basic ID 3012 ofthe waveform modulation unit division organization information 300 b 2an ID that is cross-referential with the basic ID 3012 of the waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1.

As shown in FIG. 5, the above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may berealized, for example, by defining basic IDs 3012 as hierarchical IDsand incorporating the basic ID 3012 of the waveform communication unitdivision organization information 300 b 1 into the basic IDs 3012 of thepieces of the waveform modulation unit division organization information300 b 2. Also, the above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may berealized, for example, by defining basic IDs 3012 as numerical valueshaving a digit unique to the division unit and giving an identical valueto the respective digits where the division unit is the communicationunit, of the basic ID 3012 included in the waveform communication unitdivision organization information 300 b 1 and the basic IDs 3012included in the waveform modulation unit division organizationinformation 300 b 2.

The modulation unit synchronization determination means 108 extracts apiece of waveform communication unit division organization information300 b 1 including, as an association ID 3021, the basic ID 3012 of apiece of message communication unit division organization information300 a 1 included in the notified division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 a, from the notified division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 b.

If the modulation unit synchronization determination means 108 succeedsin the extraction, it extracts one piece of message modulation unitdivision organization information 300 a 2 referred to by the messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1 and onepiece of message modulation unit division organization information 300 a2 referred to by the extracted waveform communication unit divisionorganization information 300 b 1, and creates a set of the extractedpieces of information.

If the division times 3014 included in the message modulation unitdivision organization information 300 a 2 and waveform modulation unitdivision organization information 300 b 2 forming this set meet themodulation unit synchronization determination condition 1081 to bedescribed later, the modulation unit synchronization determination means108 stores each information's basic ID 3012 in the other information'sassociation ID 3021 as shown in FIG. 5, and sets a modulation unitsynchronization determination flag 203 a 4 included in the divisionorganization information-added communication message 200 a and amodulation unit synchronization determination flag 203 b 4 included inthe division organization information-added waveform signal 200 b.

The modulation unit synchronization determination means 108 repeatedlyperforms this process with respect to all the pieces of messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1.

The above-mentioned modulation unit synchronization determinationcondition 1081 may be, for example, “the difference between the divisiontimes 3014 is equal to or smaller than a threshold” or “a value obtainedby adding an offset to the difference between the division times 3014 isequal to or smaller than a threshold.”

The threshold may be a constant value, or a different value may be setfor the measurement data type 3015 included in each messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1.

The communication analysis means 109 sets a communication analysis flag203 a 5 included in the notified division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 a and performs the following process withrespect to all the communication analyzers 1091 included in thecommunication analysis means 109.

The communication analyzer label 10911 of a communication analyzer 1091is a label unique to the communication analyzer 1091. The communicationanalysis subject 10912 contains the communication protocol of thecommunication analyzer 1091.

If the communication analysis subject 10912 included in a communicationanalyzer 1091 matches the measurement data type 3015 included in a pieceof message communication unit division organization information 300 a 1included in the notified division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 a, the communication analysis means 109 inputsa communication message 201 a included in a range indicated by thedivision position 3013 of the piece of message communication unitdivision organization information 300 a 1, into the communicationanalyzer 1091.

Then, the communication analysis means 109 stores the output result ofthe communication analyzer 1091 in the analysis value 3032 of themessage communication unit division organization information 300 a 1 andstores a unique communication analyzer label 10921 included in thecommunication analyzer 1091 in the analysis label 3031 of the messagecommunication unit division organization information 300 a 1.

The waveform analysis means 110 sets a waveform analysis flag 203 b 5included in the notified division organization information-addedwaveform signal 200 b and performs the following process with respect toall the waveform analyzers 1101 included in the waveform analysis means110.

The waveform analyzer label 11011 of a waveform analyzer 1101 is a labelunique to the waveform analyzer 1101. The waveform analysis subject11012 contains the communication protocol of the waveform analyzer 1101.Also, the waveform analysis unit 11013 contains information whether theanalysis unit of the waveform analyzer 1101 is the communication unit ormodulation unit.

The waveform analysis means 110 extracts a piece of waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1 thatincludes an association ID 3021 and where the measurement data type 3015of a piece of message communication unit division organizationinformation 300 a 1 having a basic ID 3012 stored in the association ID3021 matches the waveform analysis subject 11012 included in a waveformanalyzer 1101, among the pieces of waveform communication unit divisionorganization information 300 b 1 included in the division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 b.

If the waveform analysis unit 11013 included in the above-mentionedwaveform analyzer 1101 is the communication unit, the waveform analysismeans 110 inputs a waveform signal 201 b included in a range indicatedby the division position 3013 included in the waveform communicationunit division organization information 300 b 1, into a selected waveformanalyzer 1101.

Then, the waveform analysis means 110 stores the output result of thewaveform analyzer 1101 in the analysis value 3032 of the waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1 and storesthe waveform analyzer label 11011 of the waveform analyzer 1101 in theanalysis label 3031.

On the other hand, if the waveform analysis unit 11013 included in theabove-mentioned waveform analyzer is the modulation unit, the waveformanalysis means 110 inputs waveform signals 201 b included in rangesindicated by the division positions 3013 included in all pieces ofwaveform modulation unit division organization information 300 b 2referred to by the waveform communication unit division organizationinformation 300 b 1, into a selected waveform analyzer 1101.

Then, the waveform analysis means 110 stores the output result of thewaveform analyzer 1101 in the analysis value 3032 of the waveformmodulation unit division organization information 300 b 2 and stores thewaveform analyzer label 11011 of the waveform analyzer 1101 in theanalysis label 3031.

Next, the analysis result display procedure 1C will be described.

Each time a generation subject range 202 c 2 to be described later isspecified, the division organization information-added display datageneration means 111 generates division organization information-addeddisplay data 200 c with respect to all display data generators 1111included in the division organization information-added display datageneration means 111 and stores the display data label 11111 andgeneration subject range 202 c 2 of each display data generator 1111 inthe corresponding division organization information-added display data200 c as measurement data information 202.

The division organization information-added display data generationmeans 111 has a display data generator 1111 at least for each of theabove-mentioned communication analyzers 1091 and waveform analyzers1101. The display data label 11111 of a waveform analyzer 1101 is alabel unique to the corresponding display data generator 1111. Thegeneration subject 11112 contains information indicating an analysislabel 3031 corresponding to an analysis value 3032 convertible by thedisplay data generator 1111. The generation unit 11113 containsinformation indicating whether a division unit 3011 convertible by thedisplay data generator 1111 is the communication unit or modulationunit.

Also, the division organization information-added display datageneration means 111 extracts a piece of division organizationinformation-added communication messages 200 a that is included in thegeneration subject range 202 c 2 and where a communication analysis flag203 a 5 is set, from the division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103.

Then, the division organization information-added display datageneration means 111 extracts a piece of message communication unitdivision organization information 300 a 1 and a piece of messagemodulation unit division organization information 300 a 2 included inthe extracted division organization information-added communicationmessage 200 a.

Also, the division organization information-added display datageneration means 111 extracts, from the division organizationinformation-added waveform signal storage means 104, a piece of waveformcommunication unit division organization information 300 b 1 indicatedby a basic ID 3012 stored in the association ID 3021 of the extractedmessage communication unit division organization information 300 a 1 ofthe division organization information-added communication message 200 aand a piece of waveform modulation unit division organizationinformation 300 b 2 indicated by a basic ID 3012 stored in theassociation ID 3021 of the extracted message modulation unit divisionorganization information 300 a 2 of the division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a.

The division organization information-added display data generationmeans 111 performs the following process with respect to all of theextracted message communication unit division organization information300 a 1, message modulation unit division organization information 300 a2, waveform communication unit division organization information 300 b1, and waveform modulation unit division organization information 300 b2 (hereafter collectively referred to as “extracted divisionorganization information 300”).

The division organization information-added display data generationmeans 111 inputs the division organization information 300 into adisplay data generator 1111 having a generation unit 11113 matching thedivision unit 3011 of the extracted division organization information300 and having a generation subject 11112 matching the analysis label3031 of the extracted division organization information 300.

The display data generator 1111 generates display data 201 c byconverting an analysis value 3032 corresponding to the analysis label3031 included in the inputted division organization information 300.Then, the display data generators 1111 stores, as measurement data 201,the generated display data 201 c in division organizationinformation-added display data 200 c including the display data label11111 of the display data generator 1111.

Each time the display data 201 c is stored in the division organizationinformation-added display data 200 c by a display range number to bedescribed later, the display data generators 1111 generate displaydivision organization information 300 c 1 using the display range numberas the division unit 3011, in the division organizationinformation-added display data 200 c. Then, the display data generators1111 generate and store a basic ID 3012 unique to this display divisionorganization information 300 c 1, store the start position and endposition in the division position 3013, and stores, in the associationID 3021, all the basic IDs 3012 included in the inputted divisionorganization information 300 that is the generation source of thedisplay data 201 c.

Also, each time the display data 201 c is stored in the divisionorganization information-added display data 200 c by a selection rangenumber to be described later, the display data generator 1111 generateselection division organization information 300 c 2 using the selectionrange number as the division unit 3011, in the division organizationinformation-added display data 200 c. Then, the display data generator1111 generate and store a basic ID 3012 unique to this selectiondivision organization information 300 c 2, store the start position andend position in the division position 3013, and store, in theassociation ID 3021, all the basic IDs 3012 included in the inputteddivision organization information 300 that is the generation source ofthe data for selection.

Also, if a division position 3013 included in the selection divisionorganization information 300 c 2 is included in the division position3013 included in the display division organization information 300 c 1,the basic ID 3012 of the selection division organization information 300c 2 is considered as an ID that is cross-referential with the basic ID3012 of the display division organization information 300 c 1.

The above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may be realized by definingbasic ID 3012s as hierarchical IDs and incorporating the basic ID 3012of the display division organization information 300 c 1 into the basicID 3012 of the selection division organization information 300 c 2.Also, the above-mentioned cross-referential IDs may be realized bydefining basic IDs 3012 as numerical values having a digit unique to thedivision unit 3011 and giving an identical value to the digits where thedivision unit 3011 is a display range number, of the basic ID 3012 ofthe display division organization information 300 c 1 and the basic ID3012 of the selection division organization information 300 c 2.

When the division organization information-added display data generationmeans 111 completes the process with respect to all of the extracteddivision organization information 300, it notifies the divisionorganization information-added display data storage means 112 of thedivision organization information-added display data 200 c.

The above-mentioned generation subject range 202 c 2 may be a time rangeor a list of basic IDs 3012 included in the division organizationinformation 300.

Also, the generation subject range 202 c 2 may be specifiedautomatically periodically or may be specified manually using anoperation means.

The division organization information-added display data storage means112 stores the notified division organization information-added displaydata 200 c.

The display data specification means 113 specifies a display data label11111 and notifies the association ID display data extraction means 114of the display data label 11111, display range data that is display data201 c having a format generated by a display data generator 1111 havingthe display data label 11111 and that has a data width equal to that ofa display range number included in the display data generator 1111, andselection data having a data width equal to that of a selection rangenumber included in the display data generator 1111.

The association ID display data extraction means 114 refers to a pieceof division organization information-added display data 200 c having adisplay data label 11111 specified by the display data specificationmeans 113 among pieces of division organization information-addeddisplay data 200 c stored by the division organization information-addeddisplay data storage means 112, and performs the following process.

The association ID display data extraction means 114 extracts all otherpieces of display division organization information 300 c 1 including,as association IDs 3021, one or more association IDs 3021 included in apiece of display division organization information 300 c 1 correspondingto the specified display range data, extracts display data 201 cincluded in a range indicated by each of the extracted pieces of displaydivision organization information 300 c 1, and notifies an analysisresult display means 115 having the specified display data label 11111of the extracted display data 201 c as new display range data.

The association ID display data extraction means 114 extracts all otherpieces of selection division organization information 300 c 2 including,as association IDs 3021, one or more association IDs 3021 included in apiece of selection division organization information 300 c 2corresponding to the specified selection range data, extracts displaydata 201 c included in a range indicated by a division position includedin each of the extracted other pieces of selection division organizationinformation 300 c 2, and notifies an analysis result display means 115having the specified display data label 11111 of the extracted displaydata 201 c as new selection range data.

The analysis result display means 115 displays the notified new displayrange data and displays the new selection data in such a manner that thenew selection data is distinguished from other data, for example, in ahighlighted manner.

As a highlighting method, the new selection data may be displayed usinga remarkable color, the sizes of points or lines may be enlarged, oranimation may be used.

As described above, in this embodiment, division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 a and a divisionorganization information-added waveform signal 200 b are generated,division organization information 300 where the division organizationinformation-added communication message (200 a) and divisionorganization information-added waveform signal 200 b are associated witheach other is extracted, division organization information-added displaydata 200 c is generated on the basis of the extracted divisionorganization information 300, and the display data display data 201 ccorresponding to the display division organization information 300 c 1or selection division organization information 300 c 2 is displayed.Thus, a communication message and a waveform signal can be analyzed insuch a manner that the communication message and waveform signal areassociated with each other.

Also, by specifying a generation subject range 202 c 2, display data 201c corresponding to the specified range is displayed. This allowsanalyzing a transmission path automatically. Therefore, a user caneasily identify a cause of a transmission failure or a failureoccurrence location so as to address the transmission failure even ifthe user does not have expertise or experience about communicationprotocols or waveform signals.

Also, the communication analysis apparatus 100 includes the multiplecommunication analysis means 109 and multiple waveform analysis means110 so that one piece of data can be analyzed using the multipleanalysis means. This allows analyzing a particular signal intensivelyfrom many fronts. Thus, it is expected that the accuracy and efficiencyof analysis work will be improved.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communicationanalysis apparatus 100A according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

The communication analysis apparatus 100A includes a communication means101A, a waveform measuring means 102A, a division organizationinformation-added communication message storage means 103A, a divisionorganization information-added waveform signal storage means 104A, amessage division organization information addition means 105A, awaveform division organization information addition means 106A, amessage analysis means 107A, a synchronization determination means 108A,an analysis waveform information generation means 109A, an analysiswaveform information storage means 110A, a waveform characteristicamount calculation means 111A, an ideal waveform information storagemeans 112A, a communication state determination means 113A, and ananalysis result display means 114A.

The division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103A stores one or more division organizationinformation-added communication messages 200 aA. The divisionorganization information-added waveform signal storage means 104A storesone or more division organization information-added waveform signals 200bA. The message analysis means 107A includes one or more messageanalyzers 1071A. The message analyzers 1071A include a message analyzerlabel 10711A and a message analysis subject 10712A. The synchronizationdetermination means 108A has a synchronization determination condition1081A. The analysis waveform information storage means 110A stores oneor more pieces of analysis waveform information 400 aA. The waveformcharacteristic amount calculation means 111A includes one or morecharacteristic amount calculators 1111A. The characteristic amountcalculators 1111A include a calculator label 11111A and calculationsubject data 11112A. The ideal waveform information storage means 112Astores one or more pieces of ideal waveform information 400 bA.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration of division organizationinformation-added data 200A.

The division organization information-added data 200A includes zero ormore pieces of division organization information 300A, one piece of data201A, zero or more pieces of data information 202A, and zero or moredivision organization information processing flags 203A.

FIG. 8 is a drawing showing a configuration of the division organizationinformation 300A.

The division organization information 300A includes basic information301A, analysis information 303A, and association information 302A.

The basic information 301A includes a division unit 3011A, a basic ID3012A, a division position 3013A, a division time 3014A, and a data type3015A. The association information 302A includes zero or moreassociation IDs 3021A. The analysis information 303A includes zero ormore sets of an analysis label 3031A and an analysis value 3032A.

Configurations of the division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 aA and division organization information-addedwaveform signal 200 bA imitate a configuration of the divisionorganization information-added data 200A.

Specifically, the division organization information-added communicationmessage 200 aA includes message division organization information 300 aAas the division organization information 300A, a communication message201 aA as the data 201A, a message acquisition time 202 a 1A as the datainformation 202A, and a communication unit extraction flag 203 a 1A, amessage analysis flag 203 a 2A, and a synchronization determination flag203 a 3A as division organization information processing flags 203A.

The division organization information-added waveform signal 200 bAincludes waveform division organization information 300 bA as thedivision organization information 300A, a waveform signal 201 bA as thedata 201A, a waveform acquisition time 202 b 1A and a sampling rate 202b 2A as the data information 202A, and a communication unit extractionflag 203 b 1A and a synchronization determination flag 203 b 2A asdivision organization information processing flags 203A.

Next, operations of the communication analysis apparatus 100A will bedescribed.

Processes performed by the communication analysis apparatus 100A arebroadly classified into four procedures: a communication messageacquisition and analysis procedure 1A; a waveform signal acquisition andsynchronization procedure 1B; an analysis waveform informationgeneration procedure 1C; and a communication state determinationprocedure 1D. Hereafter, the above-mentioned procedures 1A to 1D will bedescribed.

The message acquisition and analysis procedure 1A will be described.

The communication means 101A is connected to a wired or wirelesstransmission path. The communication means 101 acquires a communicationmessage 201 aA transmitted or received by an apparatus connected to thetransmission path, records a message acquisition time 202 a 1Aindicating the time when the communication message 201 aA has beenacquired, and notifies the division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103A of the communication message201 aA and message acquisition time 202 a 1A.

The communication analysis apparatus 100A may include one or morecommunication means 101A and each communication means 101A may acquirethe communication message 201 aA adhering to a different communicationprotocol.

Each time the division organization information-added communicationmessage storage means 103A is notified of the communication message 201aA, it newly generates the division organization information-addedcommunication message 200 aA, stores and memorizes the communicationmessage 201 aA and message acquisition time 202 a 1A.

Also, the division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103A notifies the message division organizationinformation addition means 105A of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 aA where the communicationunit extraction flag 203 a 1A is not set, among the divisionorganization information-added communication messages 200 aA. Thedivision organization information-added communication message storagemeans 103A notifies the message analysis means 107A of a divisionorganization information-added communication message 200 aA where thecommunication unit extraction flag 203 a 1A is set and the messageanalysis flag 203 a 2A is not set. The division organizationinformation-added communication message storage means 103 notifies thesynchronization determination means 108A of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 aA where the messageanalysis flag 203 a 2A is set and the synchronization determination flag203 a 3A is not set. The division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103A notifies the analysis waveforminformation generation means 109A of a division organizationinformation-added communication message 200 aA where the synchronizationdetermination flag 203 a 3A is set.

The message division organization information addition means 105A setsthe communication unit extraction flag 203 a 1A of the divisionorganization information-added communication message 200 aA that isnotified of by the division organization information-added communicationmessage storage means 103A and where the communication unit extractionflag 203 a 1A is not set, so as to derive the start position and endposition of the communication unit included in the communication message201 aA and a communication protocol adhered to by the communicationmessage 201 aA. Each time the start position and end position arederived, the message division organization information addition means105A generates the message division organization information 300 aA andstores the basic information 301A. Specifically, the message divisionorganization information addition means 105A generates the basic ID3012A unique to the message division organization information 300 aA,derives a start time corresponding to the start position and an end timecorresponding to the end position on the basis of the messageacquisition time 202 a 1A, stores the basic ID 3012A, stores the startposition and end position in the division position 3013A, stores thestart time and end time in the division time 3014A, and stores thecommunication protocol in the data type 3015A.

As for the start position and end position, the message divisionorganization information addition means 105A may derive these positionsfrom a downtime of the communication message 201 aA or by extracting astart bit and a stop bit. As for the communication protocol, the messagedivision organization information addition means 105A may include atable for associating communication message header formats andcommunication protocols with each other and may derive the communicationprotocol by referring to the table. Also, the communication analysisapparatus 100A may include a communication means 101A for eachcommunication protocol and the message division organization informationaddition means 105A may derive the communication protocol bydistinguishing a communication means 101A that is the source of thecommunication message 201 aA.

The message analysis means 107A sets the message analysis flag 203 a 2Aincluded in the division organization information-added communicationmessage 200 aA that is notified by the division organizationinformation-added communication message storage means 103A and where thecommunication unit extraction flag 203 a 1A is set and the messageanalysis flag 203 a 2A is not set, and performs the following processwith respect to all the message analyzers 1071A included in the messageanalysis means 107A.

If the message analysis subject 10712A of the message analyzer 1071Amatches the data type 3015A of the message division organizationinformation 300 aA, the message analysis means 107A inputs, into themessage analyzer 1071A, a communication message 201 aA included in arange indicated by the start position and end position stored in thedivision position 3013A of the message division organization information300 aA, stores the output result of the message analyzer 1071A in theanalysis value 3032A of the message division organization information300 aA, and stores the message analyzer label 10711A of the messageanalyzer 1071A in the analysis label 3031A.

The message analyzer 1071A may be an address analyzer for deriving thedestination address and source address of the communication message ormay be a CRC error determination apparatus for deriving a CRC error ofthe communication message.

The waveform signal acquisition and synchronization procedure 1B will bedescribed.

The waveform measuring means 102A is connected to a wired or wirelesstransmission path. The communication means 101 acquires a waveformsignal 201 bA transmitted or received by an apparatus connected to thetransmission path at an arbitrary sampling rate 202 b 2A one afteranother, records a waveform acquisition time 202 b 1A indicating thetime when the waveform signal 201 bA has been acquired, and notifies thedivision organization information-added waveform signal storage means104A of the waveform signal 201 bA, waveform acquisition time 202 b 1A,and sampling rate 202 b 2A.

The communication analysis apparatus 100A may include one or morewaveform measuring means 102A and each waveform measuring means 102A mayacquire the waveform signal 201 bA having the different sampling rate202 b 2A.

Each time the division organization information-added waveform signalstorage means 104A is notified of the waveform signal 201 bA, it newlygenerates the division organization information-added waveform signal200 bA, and stores and memorizes the waveform acquisition time 202 b 1A,waveform acquisition time 202 b 1A, and sampling rate 202 b 2A.

Also, the division organization information-added waveform signalstorage means 104A notifies the waveform division organizationinformation addition means 106A of a division organizationinformation-added waveform signal 200 bA where the communication unitextraction flag 203 b 1A is not set, among the division organizationinformation-added waveform signals 200 bA, notifies the synchronizationdetermination means 108A of a division organization information-addedwaveform signal 200 bA where the communication unit extraction flag 203b 1A is set, and notifies the analysis waveform information generationmeans 109A of a division organization information-added waveform signal200 bA where the synchronization determination flag 203 b 2A is set.

The waveform division organization information addition means 106A setsthe communication unit extraction flag 203 b 1A of the divisionorganization information-added waveform signal 200 bA that is notifiedby the division organization information-added communication messagestorage means 103A and where the communication unit extraction flag 203b 1A is not set, and derives the start position and end position of thecommunication unit from the waveform signal 201 bA. Each time the startposition and end position are extracted, the waveform divisionorganization information addition means 106A generates the waveformdivision organization information 300 bA and stores the basicinformation 301A included in the waveform division organizationinformation 300 bA. Specifically, the waveform division organizationinformation addition means 106A generates the basic ID 3012A unique tothe waveform division organization information 300 bA, derives the starttime corresponding to the start position and the end time correspondingto the end position on the basis of the waveform acquisition time 202 b1A and sampling rate 202 b 2A, sets the communication unit for thedivision unit 3011A, stores the basic ID 3012A, stores the startposition and end position in the division position 3013A, and stores thestart time and end time in the division time 3014A.

As for the start position and end position, the waveform divisionorganization information addition means 106A may have a level thresholdand derive these positions by comparing the level of the waveform signal201 bA with the level threshold. Also, the message division organizationinformation addition means 105A may have a level change amount thresholdand derive the start position and end position by comparing the levelchange amount of the waveform signal 201 bA with the level change amountthreshold.

The synchronization determination means 108A extracts one of the piecesof message division organization information 300 aA included in thedivision organization information-added communication message 200 aAthat is notified by the division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103A and where the synchronizationdetermination flag 203 a 3A is not set, extracts one of the pieces ofwaveform division organization information 300 bA included in thedivision organization information-added waveform signal 200 bA that isnotified by the division organization information-added waveform signalstorage means 104A and where the synchronization determination flag 203b 2A is not set, and creates a set of the extracted pieces ofinformation. If the division times 3014A of the message divisionorganization information 300 aA and the waveform division organizationinformation 300 bA meet the synchronization determination condition1081, the synchronization determination means 108A stores eachinformation's basic ID 3012 in the other information's association ID3021A, and sets the modulation unit extraction flag 203 a 3 included inthe division organization information-added communication message 200 aAand the synchronization determination flag 203 b 2A included in thedivision organization information-added waveform signal 200 bA. Thesynchronization determination means 108A repeatedly performs thisprocess with respect to all sets of message division organizationinformation 300 aA and waveform division organization information 300bA.

This aspect is shown in FIG. 9. The association between a communicationmessage 201 aA and a waveform signal 201 bA using division organizationinformation 300A will be described specifically using FIG. 9.

The synchronization determination means 108A extracts one piece ofmessage division organization information 300 aA included in thedivision organization information-added communication message 200 aAthat is notified by the division organization information-addedcommunication message storage means 103A and where a synchronizationdetermination flag 203 a 3A is not set and one piece of waveformdivision organization information 300 bA included in the divisionorganization information-added waveform signal 200 bA that is notifiedby the division organization information-added waveform signal storagemeans 104A and where the synchronization determination flag 203 b 2A isnot set, and creates a set of the extracted pieces of information. Ifthe division times 3014A of the message division organizationinformation 300 aA and the waveform division organization information300 bA meet the synchronization determination condition 1081, thesynchronization determination means 108A stores the basic ID3012A=P01-01 of the message division organization information 300 aA inthe association ID 3021A of the waveform division organizationinformation 300 bA, and stores the basic ID 3012A=W01-01 of the divisionorganization information 300 bA in the association ID 3021A of thedivision organization information 300 aA.

Subsequently, as such, if the division times 3014A of the messagedivision organization information 300 aA and the waveform divisionorganization information 300 bA meet the synchronization determinationcondition 1081A, the synchronization determination means 108A stores thebasic ID 3012A=P01-02 of the message division organization information300 aA in the association ID 3021A of the waveform division organizationinformation 300 bA, and stores the basic ID 3012A=W01-02 of the divisionorganization information 300 bA in the association ID 3021A of thedivision organization information 300 aA.

Subsequently, as such, if the division times 3014A of the messagedivision organization information 300 aA and the waveform divisionorganization information 300 bA meet the synchronization determinationcondition 1081A, the synchronization determination means 108A stores thebasic ID 3012A=P01-03 of the message division organization information300 aA in the association ID 3021A of the waveform division organizationinformation 300 bA, and stores the basic ID 3012A=W01-03 of the divisionorganization information 300 bA in the association ID 3021A of thedivision organization information 300 aA.

Hereafter, the same operations will repeatedly be performed.

The synchronization determination condition 1081A may be, for example,“the difference between the division times is equal to or smaller than athreshold” or “a value obtained by adding an offset to the differencebetween the division times is equal to or smaller than a threshold.” Thethreshold may be a constant value, or a different value may be set foreach of the communication protocols included in the divisionorganization information-added communication message 200 aA.

The analysis waveform information generation procedure 1C will bedescribed.

The analysis waveform information generation means 109A refers to themessage division organization information 300 aA that is notified by thedivision organization information-added waveform signal storage means104A and includes, as the basic ID 3012A, the association ID 3021A ofthe waveform division organization information 300 bA included in thedivision organization information-added waveform signal 200 bA, so as toacquire a data type 3015A, an analysis label 3031A, and an analysisvalue 3032A. Subsequently, the analysis waveform information generationmeans 109A acquires an analysis part start position and an analysis partend position by referring to an analysis part determination table 1091Ashown in FIG. 10 using the data type 3015A and the division position3013A included in the waveform division organization information 300 bAas index keys for search, and extracts, as an analysis part waveformsignal 401 aA, a waveform signal included in a range specified by theanalysis part start position and the analysis part end position. Dataincluded in the analysis part determination table 1091A may be set whena system is introduced. Also, data determined by accumulating a waveformsignal obtained on the basis of an evaluation test conducted before asystem is introduced and then obtaining statistics with respect to theaccumulated waveform signals may be set. Then, each time the analysiswaveform information generation means 109A extracts an analysis partwaveform signal 401 aA, it generates analysis waveform information 400aA as shown in FIG. 11, stores the analysis part waveform signal 401 aA,data type 3015A, analysis waveform information 3031A, and analysis value3032A in the analysis waveform information 400 aA, and notifies theanalysis waveform information storage means 110A of the analysiswaveform information 400 aA.

The analysis waveform information storage means 110A notifies thewaveform characteristic amount calculation means 111A of a piece ofanalysis waveform information 400 aA where a characteristic amountcalculation flag is not set, among the pieces of analysis waveforminformation 400 aA notified by the analysis waveform informationgeneration means 109A, and notifies the communication statedetermination means 113A of a piece of analysis waveform information 400aA where a characteristic amount calculation flag is set and acommunication state determination flag is not set.

The waveform characteristic amount calculation means 111A sets acharacteristic amount calculation flag included in a piece of analysiswaveform information 400 aA that is notified by the analysis waveforminformation storage means 110A and where the characteristic amountcalculation flag is not set, and performs the following process withrespect to all the characteristic amount calculators 1111A included inthe waveform characteristic amount calculation means 111A.

The waveform characteristic amount calculation means 111A selects thedata type 3015A of the analysis waveform information 400 aA andcalculation subject data 11112 a of the characteristic amount calculator1111A that are matched.

The waveform characteristic amount calculation means 111A inputs, intothe selected characteristic amount calculator 1111A, the analysis partwaveform signal 401 aA included in the analysis waveform information 400aA, stores the output result of the characteristic amount calculator1111A in the characteristic amount 403 aA of the analysis waveforminformation 400 aA, and stores the calculator label 11111A of thecharacteristic amount calculator 1111A in the characteristic amount 402aA.

One of the characteristic amount calculators 1111A may be a Fouriertransformer for deriving a frequency component of a waveform signal, anI-Q calculator for deriving an in-phase component and an out-of-phasecomponent of a waveform signal, or an MER calculator for derivingfluctuation amounts of the in-phase component and out-of-phasecomponent.

The communication state determination procedure 1D will be described.

The communication state determination means 113A sets a statedetermination flag included in analysis waveform information that isnotified by the analysis waveform information storage means 110A andwhere a characteristic amount calculation flag is set and thecommunication state determination flag is not set, and acquires idealwaveform information 400 bA including the data type 3015A of theanalysis waveform information 400 aA from the ideal waveform informationstorage means 112A.

The communication state determination means 113A compares the analysiswaveform information 400 aA with an analysis part waveform signalincluded in the analysis waveform information 400 aA and acharacteristic amount so as to obtain a comparison value. Also, thecommunication state determination means 113A inputs the comparison valueinto the communication state determination table 1131A so as to obtain acommunication state value 404 aA, and stores the obtained communicationstate value 404 aA in the analysis waveform information 400 aA.

The comparison value of the analysis part waveform signal may be thelargest amplitude value or a difference between average values. If thecharacteristic amount is a frequency component, the comparison value ofthe characteristic amount may be a difference between power ofparticular frequencies. If the characteristic amount is an in-phasecomponent and an out-of-phase component, the comparison value may be adifference between amplitude distributions or a difference between phasedistributions.

The communication state value may be the aged deterioration state of atransmission/reception terminal, the name of a failure part, the lengthof a transmission path between transmission/reception terminals, theaged deterioration state of the transmission path, the number ofterminals connected to the whole transmission path, or the name of anoise source that adds noise to the waveform signal 201 bA.

The contents of these quantitative estimations are shown in FIG. 12.

The analysis result display means 114A acquires, from the analysiswaveform information storage means 110A, the analysis waveforminformation 400 aA specified automatically or in accordance with amanual instruction made by a worker. If a state determination flag ofthe analysis waveform information 400 aA is set, the analysis resultdisplay means 114A displays the contents of the state determinationflag.

Industrial Applicability

Among usage examples of the present invention is a communicationabnormality analysis tool of a communication network of such as anair-conditioning system of a building.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A communication analysis apparatus connected to a transmission path through which a plurality of apparatuses transmits or receives a message conforming to a predetermined communication protocol with one another, the communication analysis apparatus comprising: ideal waveform information storage means for retaining an ideal waveform signal conforming to the communication protocol; analysis waveform information generation means; communication state determination means; and waveform characteristic amount calculation means, wherein the analysis waveform information generation means extracts, as an analysis waveform signal, a portion corresponding to the ideal waveform signal and a time of a waveform signal received from the transmission path, the waveform characteristic amount calculation means calculates a characteristic amount of the analysis waveform signal and a characteristic amount of the ideal waveform signal, and the communication state determination means estimates a communication state of the transmission path on the basis of an analysis waveform signal extracted by the analysis waveform information generation means and an ideal waveform signal stored in the ideal waveform information storage means by comparing a characteristic amount of an analysis waveform signal outputted from the waveform characteristic amount calculation means with a characteristic amount of an ideal waveform signal.
 2. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 1, wherein a characteristic amount calculated by the waveform characteristic amount calculation means includes a phase component at a time when the analysis waveform signal and the ideal waveform signal are partitioned into predetermined lengths.
 3. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 2, wherein the communication state determination means compares the analysis waveform signal with the ideal waveform signal using a difference between distributions of the phase component in the predetermined lengths.
 4. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 1, wherein a characteristic amount calculated by the waveform characteristic amount calculation means includes an amplitude component at a time when the analysis waveform signal and the ideal waveform signal are partitioned into predetermined lengths.
 5. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 4, wherein the communication state determination means compares the analysis waveform signal with the ideal waveform signal using a difference between distributions of the amplitude component in the predetermined lengths.
 6. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 1, comprising analysis result display means, wherein the analysis result display means displays a communication state of the transmission path estimated by the communication state determination means.
 7. A communication analysis apparatus connected to a transmission path through which a message is transmitted or received among a plurality of apparatuses, the communication analysis apparatus comprising: ideal waveform information storage means for retaining an ideal waveform signal conforming to a predetermined communication protocol; analysis waveform information generation means; communication state determination means; and synchronization determination means, wherein the analysis waveform information generation means extracts, from a message received from the transmission path, a message having a communication protocol matching a communication protocol of the ideal waveform signal and a waveform signal corresponding to the message, and extracts a portion of the extracted waveform signal corresponding to the ideal waveform signal and a time as an analysis waveform signal, the communication state determination means estimates a communication state of the transmission path on the basis of an analysis waveform signal extracted by the analysis waveform information generation means and an ideal waveform signal stored in the ideal waveform information storage means, and the synchronization determination means associates a waveform signal transmitted through the transmission path and a communication message transmitted through the transmission path with each other using a time.
 8. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 7, comprising analysis waveform information storage means, wherein the analysis waveform information storage means stores the analysis waveform signal and a communication message associated with the waveform signal in combination.
 9. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 8, wherein the communication state estimated by the communication state determination means includes a state of deterioration with time of the transmission path.
 10. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 8, wherein the communication state estimated by the communication state determination means includes a length of a transmission path linking a source terminal of the analysis waveform signal and a destination terminal thereof.
 11. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 8, wherein the communication state estimated by the communication state determination means includes a failure part of a source terminal or a destination terminal of the analysis waveform signal.
 12. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 8, wherein the communication state estimated by the communication state determination means includes the number of terminals connected to the whole transmission path.
 13. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 8, wherein the communication state estimated by the communication state determination means includes a name of a noise source.
 14. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 7, comprising: communication means; and waveform measuring means, wherein the communication means receives a communication message from the transmission path and the acquisition time of the communication message one after another and notifies first storage means of the communication message and the acquisition time, the waveform measuring means receives a waveform signal from the transmission path and the acquisition time of the waveform signal one after another and notifies second storage means of the waveform signal and the acquisition time, the first storage means stores the communication message and the acquisition time thereof, the second storage means stores the waveform signal and the acquisition time thereof, and the synchronization determination means operates when a difference between the acquisition time of the communication message stored in the first storage means and the acquisition time of the waveform signal stored in the second storage means is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.
 15. The communication analysis apparatus of claim 7, comprising analysis result display means, wherein the analysis result display means displays a communication state of the transmission path estimated by the communication state determination means. 